Camp Life in the Woods and the Tricks of Trapping and Trap Making eBook

huts in ponds or swamps, which it frequents; and although
not as large as those of the beaver they are constructed
in the same manner and of the same materials.
Muskrats are mostly nocturnal in their habits; they
are tireless swimmers, and in the winter travel great
distances beneath the ice; all of which peculiarities
are like the beaver. Their food is quite variable,
consisting of grass and roots, oats, corn and other
grain, apples and nuts, and even tomatoes, turnips,
carrots, mussels and clams, whenever these can be
found.

The muskrat is a native of all of the Eastern, Western,
and Middle States and also the Southern States, with
the exception of Georgia, Alabama and Florida.
They are also found in Canada and the Arctic regions,
and in the North-west. They are hunted and captured
as a means of support to the native tribes of Indians
who sell or trade the furs to Eastern dealers.
The fur somewhat resembles that of the mink in texture,
although not as fine, and the color varies from dark
brown above to grey beneath. It is in its best
condition during the winter, especially in March.
The animal possesses a musky smell, from which it
takes its name. It is said by many that the flesh
of the animal, when carefully prepared, becomes quite
palatable food.

Their houses are so nearly like those of the beaver
that a [Page 183] second description is scarcely
necessary. They are often five or six feet in
height, and the entrances are all under water.
Dozens of these huts may often be seen in ponds and
marshes, and sometimes they exist in such numbers
as to give the appearance of a veritable Esquimaux
village. These houses are used only in the winter
season. In general the muskrat lives in burrows,
which it excavates in the banks of ponds or streams,
bringing forth its young, from three to nine in number,
in the nest, which it forms at the end of the tunnel.
They are very prolific, producing three litters a year.
Like the beaver, otter and mink, the muskrat can travel
long distances under the ice with only one supply
of fresh air, and its method is certainly very interesting.
Before plunging beneath the ice the animal fills its
lungs with air, and when under the water it swims
until it can no longer hold its breath. It then
rises up beneath the ice, empties its lungs, the air
remaining in bubbles beneath the ice. In a short
time this air absorbs sufficient oxygen from the water
and ice as to be life-sustaining, when the animal
again inhales it and proceeds on its journey.
It is by this means that the beaver, muskrat and mink
are enabled to travel such great distances beneath
unbroken ice, and it is certainly a very novel and
interesting method. Where the ice is thin and
transparent these animals are sometimes captured through
the means of this habit. A heavy stroke on the
frozen hut will drive its occupants to the water,
and their course may easily be followed through the
ice. If one of them is tracked, he will presently